The 19-year-old Los Gatos High School graduate is home recovering from shrapnel wounds he sustained during intense fighting in Fallujah.

"It's not something that you're hoping for, to go back," Dickinson says. "But it's my job. Now that I've had this experience ... I believe we'll be fairly well prepared to go in there again."

His infantry unit, the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, was deployed to Iraq during summer 2004. On Nov. 8, the unit invaded Fallujah. Dickinson's platoon went from door to door, fighting insurgents from countries such as Chechnya, Iran and Syria who had taken over deserted Iraqi homes.

Several days into fighting, on Nov. 13, about half of Dickinson's 13-member fire squad entered a home from which gunfire had come, and Dickinson and the others remained outside. A firefight broke out, and he was ordered to chase after a man who had escaped from the house. But Dickinson didn't see exactly where the man went—he had hidden behind a 6-foot wall around the house. When Dickinson approached, the man lobbed a grenade over the wall and it exploded just feet in front of him.

"I knew I'd gotten hit," Dickinson says. "I looked down and I was bleeding pretty badly."

An adrenaline rush allowed him to run and tell his squad leader he had been hit, but shrapnel had cut his legs badly enough that he could not walk out, and was eventually dragged to safety.

Luckily, Dickinson was wearing full protective gear that probably saved his life, and he has mostly recovered from shrapnel wounds on his legs, arms and face.

"I'm having surgery soon on my right eye," he says. "There's still a bit of shrapnel causing me some problems."

Dickinson was commended for his service at a Dec. 6 Los Gatos Town Council meeting. His family—mother, Martha, father, Harry, and younger brother Sam—were on hand to receive the commendation with him.

Harry Dickinson says that he and his wife were surprised when their son enlisted in the Marine Corps; they were expecting him to go to college like many of his peers. But they supported his decision and Harry says he is proud of his son.

"We feel very fortunate that we got him back pretty much in one piece," Harry Dickinson said.

His family, he says, feels they accepted the town's commendation on behalf of all of the families with sons and daughters serving in the war.

"I think we all kind of forget about it," he says.

Ben Dickinson says he was honored by the town's recognition. He has received "tons and tons of support" from people at home. One thing he isn't too happy about, though, is the news coverage of the war.

"They leave a lot of stuff out," he says. "They're calling these guys insurgents a lot, when plain and simple these guys are terrorists."

Dickinson also says the military's efforts to assist civilians are often overlooked. His unit has passed out soccer balls to children, obtained wheelbarrows for farmers and given aid in other ways. The soldiers received kindness in turn.

"Coming back here, you really have to listen for details like that. It's not out in the open."

Right now, Dickinson is assisting with recruitment operations in Santa Clara. Later this month, he'll return to Camp Pendleton in Southern California and wait for his battalion to return. Before the heaviest of the fighting, there were plans for the unit to return to Iraq in September 2005 after several months at home, but those plans may change.

Whatever he may be called upon to do next, he says he will not hesitate.

"I'm just putting in time for my country," he says. "I signed up for four years."

For now, though, being home with family and friends is comforting to him. While deployed, he communicated with them through email and occasional phone calls before entering Fallujah.

There were no love letters sent, though. Dickinson says he doesn't have a girlfriend.

"Not currently," he says. "But I'm working on something."